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Wicked Witch of the East
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (1900) The Wicked Witch of the East is a fictional character created by L. Frank Baum. She is first introduced in Baum's first Oz book titled 'The Wonderful Wizard of Oz' and only is involved in the second chapter of the story. She never actually appears in the book. However, she is mentioned multiple times. The Witch of the East was one of four powerful Witches who presided over the four countries of the Land of Oz. She was the original owner of the magic Silver Shoes, (Ruby Slippers in the 1939 movie) which helped her conquer and enslave the Munchkins in the Munchkin Country. She was said to be much more powerful than Locasta Tattypoo aka the Good Witch of the North who lived in the country of the Gillikins of Oz, but not near as powerful as the beautiful sorceress lady Glinda, the Good Witch of the South who ruled over the Quadlings. The Wicked Witch of the East is ultimately killed when child protagonist Dorothy Gale of Kansas came to Oz via cyclone along with her pet dog named Toto. As result, the dead Wicked Witch of the East technically doesn't appear in the rest of the story nor its sequel books. However, people do refer to her as they all remember her. Also, note that in Baum's original book, it never does imply or say that she is the sister to the Wicked Witch of the West. Nor does it confirm that the two Wicked Witch's are properly acquainted. Wicked History The Wicked Witch of the East appeared to have a humble dwelling. In Baum's Oz book titled 'The Tin Woodman of Oz' (1918), instead of a castle or mansion, she appears to have a standard cottage house deep within the Munchkin forest and has one female Munchkin servant to do the housework. The Munchkin slaves seemed to be a happy folk, as long as they didn't displease the Wicked Witch. Basically, you could live happily under the Wicked Witch of the East, as long as you did what she wanted. Before Dorothy... The Wicked Witch of the East was far more Wicked and evil than the West. She was very cold-blooded in her days before Dorothy Gale arrived in Oz via Cyclone. She conquered the Country of the Munchkins and tyrannically ruled them after the fall of the mortal King Pastoria who disappeared from Oz when the Wizard arrived via Hot-Air Balloon and overthrew him. The Wicked Witch of the East imprisoned the Munchkins by using her black magic, making them slave away for her night and day for years on end. Mostly to bring her food to cook and eat, and also to clean her house until it was spotless. The Wizard of Oz tried to overthrow her, just as he tried to overthrow the Wicked Witch of the West in the Winkie country of Oz, but was unsuccessful and was unable to subdue her as well. Among her exceedingly cruel actions was the enchantment of Nick Chopper's axe which caused him to tragically cut up his own body and eventually turn into the Tin Woodman, causing him to lose his ability to love and eventually long for a heart. The Wicked Witch of the East finally got her Karma and met her end when Dorothy Gale's Kansas farmhouse fell right on top of her and crushed her to death. Therefore when she is introduced in the story, the Witch of the East is already dead and gone. As she is stated to only be appearing from the lower half of her feet sticking up from under the great beam of the fallen house. Her feet are said to be shod in Silver Shoes with pointed toes. Shortly after Dorothy's house lands on the Wicked Witch of the East, her body crumbles to dust. Whatever magic was holding her together must have been something she needed to keep doing to stay alive as she was said to be so old that just like the Wicked Witch of the West, the blood in her body dried up long ago. In the film versions, instead of crumbling away, her feet slowly roll up into her legs like a giant party horn. Dorothy obtained her magical Silver Shoes which was all that was left behind. Her death was cause for a great feast and banquet in Munchkinland, as the Munchkin people threw a huge celebration and declared Dorothy a hero for ever more. (The Wonderful Wizard of Oz) It was later revealed that the Wicked Witch lived in a hut, with her maid Nimmie Amee, who was Nick Chopper's sweetheart. Determined to prevent her from getting married, the Wicked Witch of the East resolved to turn her into an old crone. It was while the Witch was out looking for herbs that would effect such a transformation that Dorothy's house landed on her. (The Tin Woodman of Oz) Non-Canon Her sister, the Wicked Witch of the West, came to her for advice on how to conquer the Wizard of Oz shortly after his arrival in Winkie Country. She advised her sister to seek out Gayelette and get the Winged Monkeys from her, which she did. (How the Wizard Came to Oz) Book Appearances * The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (1900) * The Tin Woodman of Oz (1918) Non-Canon * How the Wizard Came to Oz Background The witch is much talked about in The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (the first of many Oz books by L. Frank Baum) and later in Baum's The Tin Woodman of Oz. There is significant discrepancy between the two books with regard to the exact role played by the Wicked Witch of the East in relation to Nick Chopper and his fiancée, but what is clear in both books is that the Tin Woodman became the way he is because of the Wicked Witch's enchantments. The Wizard of Oz 1939 In the 1939 movie, The Wizard of Oz, the Wicked Witch of the East is seen briefly flying past the house during the cyclone, wearing the ruby slippers. The famous sequence of the house dropping from the cyclone is actually a subjective point of view shot, showing the witch's view as Dorothy's house crushes her to death. She is not on screen again except for her stockinged feet sticking out from under the house. In the movie, the shoes were changed to ruby slippers to look better for the Technicolor film. The film portrays the Witch as being the sister of the Wicked Witch of the West, a relationship neither stated nor implied in Baum's books. The Lion of Oz Cartoon Prior to her death under Dorothy's house, the Wicked Witch of the East encounters the Cowardly Lion who, at the time, had a medal of courage from his friend, Oscar Diggs and so was just the Lion; not Cowardly. The Wicked Witch lied and said she had Diggs captive, which lead the Lion on a quest to find the Flower of Oz. (Lion of Oz) The Muppets' Wizard of Oz, Miss Piggy Is Wicked! as the Wicked Witch of the East.]] In The Muppets' Wizard of Oz (2005), the Wicked Witch of the East is played by Miss Piggy (as are all of the other witches). She managed to lift the diner up long enough to threaten the Munchkins before it fell back on top of her, killing her this time. (The Muppets' Wizard of Oz) Dorothy and the Witches of Oz The Wicked Witches of the East and West have come to New York City, where they begin a scheme to defeat Dorothy Gale, along with a number of allies from Oz. (Dorothy and the Witches of Oz) Oz: The Great and Powerful :Main Article: Evanora Evanora was the former advisor to the King before she betrayed and murdered him. She is the Wicked Witch of the East, although she manipulates her sister Theodora that Glinda is the Wicked Witch. (Oz: The Great and Powerful) Modern works In Alexander Melentyevich Volkov's The Wizard of the Emerald City, the Witch's name is Gingema. Like in the 1939 movie, the two Wicked Witches are sisters. The book begins with her summoning a magical hurricane to destroy all humanity (since people, in her opinion, exterminate her food). However, Villina learns of her schemes, and changes the spell to only affect one house (her magic book told her it was always empty during storms) and drop it on Gingema's head. Unlike in Baum's books, while being the formal ruler of the Munchkins, she interfered little in their lives, and only demanded that people collect food for her. Since her food was snakes, leeches, spiders, and other similarly disgusting creatures which the Munchkins were afraid of, that was nevertheless a heavy burden for them. In the Broadway musical, The Wiz, The Wicked Witch of the East is named Evamene and terrorizes the Munchkins. In the more recent novel, Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West by author Gregory Maguire, The Wicked Witch of the East is known as Nessarose Thropp. She is the beautiful but physically handicapped (born with no arms in the book and paraplegic in musical) sister of Elphaba (the Wicked Witch of the West). She gains the ability to walk unsupported thanks to the enchanted silver/ruby shoes. In both the book and musical, the character is portrayed in a less negative light than in the Baum books or earlier movie, although she becomes fanatical, (something of a religious "nut-job" in the books and desperately and manipulatively dependent on the munchkin Boq in musicals) so much so that she limits the rights of the Munchkins and ends up being referred to as a 'wicked witch'. In Roger S. Baum's Lion of Oz and the Badge of Courage, the Wicked Witch of the East is the main antagonist. The book was adapted into the 2000 animated film Lion of Oz. Merchandise In 2007, Turner Entertainment collaborated with Madame Alexander to create a series of McDonald's Happy Meal toys centered on the main characters from the 1939 movie, one of which was the Wicked Witch of the East. She is depicted as having blonde hair, a red shirt with a green belt and a burgundy dress over her distinguishable striped stockings and ruby slippers. She also is wearing a hat similar to the Witch of the West's, although it is colored red. WixOzWitchEast.jpg Wicked Witch of the East.jpg 42415_wicked_witch_of_th.jpg Other Appearances * The Wizard of Oz (1939): Margaret Hamilton * Lion of Oz (2000): Lynn Redgrave * Wicked (2003): Michelle Federer as Nessarose * The Muppets' Wizard of Oz (2005): Miss Piggy * Dorothy and the Witches of Oz (2012): Sarah Lieving * Oz: The Great and Powerful (2013): Rachel Weisz as Evanora External Links * [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wicked_Witch_of_the_East Wicked Witch of the East - Wikipedia] Category:Oz Book Characters Category:Wicked Characters Category:Munchkin Country Category:Witches Category:Antagonists Category:Villains Category:Rulers in Oz Category:Once Upon a Time Characters